Howdy Mycopreneurs,

Hello from Costa Rica 🇨🇷?

Today’s newsletter features the first installment of an original three part series commissioned specifically for Mycopreneur by one of the rising star’s of Latin America’s mycology community:

Ezequiel Cruz of Fungaria (@_fungaria_ on IG)

If you’ve been around the Mycopreneur community for a while, you may recognize Ezequiel - our collaboration goes back to 2020 and he is one of my personal heroes and a dear friend. Without further adieu, I’m, honored and delighted to present this original work from Ezequiel:

Why Protecting Fungi Matters for Mycopreneurs

Part I: Advancements in Fungal Conservancy

Ezequiel A. Cruz-Campuzano - Fungaria

Have you ever wondered if fungi are protected by law — or if they even need protection? Conservation efforts often focus on plants and animals, but fungi rarely get the same attention. Yet, they are just as essential—not only for ecosystems or traditional uses, but also for a rapidly growing industry of fungal-based products.

While cultivated mushrooms dominate the market, wild fungi are becoming a commercial goldmine, appearing in all sorts of products, ranging from medicinal supplements, plant growth enhancers, biomaterials, and more (e.g. Amanita muscaria gummies, Rhizopogon roseolus inoculants & Fomes fomentarius leather). But who regulates their collection? Are wild strains being sustainably sourced or legally patented? Without legal recognition, many fungi face threats that could impact biodiversity, industry, and future discoveries.

In this first installment, we’ll take a look at key milestones in fungal conservation to understand how and why they have been historically neglected by environmental laws.

Are Wild Fungi Protected? Their Status in Local and Global Conservation Policies

Short answer? Kind of. Two major entities oversee biodiversity conservation and trade: the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), best known for producing the Red List of Threatened Species, which addresses the conservation status of wildlife globally, but many IUCN commissions also compile regional and national assessments. In regards to biodiversity, the IUCN plays a crucial role in guiding global biodiversity policies, from habitat restoration to species-specific programs and sustainable resource management. 

The other major entity is the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). But before we dive into what it does, take a look at CITES’ full name as stated in its web site—its protection is explicitly limited to “Wild Fauna and Flora.” This wording completely ignores other exploited organisms like fungi and algae, leaving them without the same legal safeguards. Continuing, CITES regulates international wildlife trade to ensure it doesn’t threaten the survival of wild populations, setting restrictions on species that are over harvested for commercial purposes.

And how have these two organizations acted towards Fungal Conservancy. Let’s begin with the IUCN’s Red List.

The Emergence of Fungal Red Lists in Europe

Although the Red List initiative was established in 1964, it took a while before fungal species could make it’s not so triumphant entrance. The first hyphae of fungal conservation emerged in 1982, when Dieter Benkert produced the first-ever Red List of endangered macrofungi of Germany, in accordance with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) criteria.

It's worth noting that this work was not commissioned by any German governing body or the IUCN itself—Benkert took the initiative independently.

This self-driven effort paved the way for by the foundation of the European Council for the Conservation of Fungi (ECCF) in 1985^, by a network of mycologists, in response to alarming reports of significant declines in fruiting bodies production and dwindling species records during the 1970’s and early 80’s: The ECCF’s mission was to document Europe’s macroscopic fungi, assess species’ conservation status, and develop regional and continental Red Lists of threatened fungi, based on IUCN’s guidelines. Given these advances, many European countries had developed comprehensive Red Lists by the 1990’s. But what about countries in other continents? 

Red Listing Fungi around the world

It may come as no surprise that creating Red Lists for fungi outside of Europe is far more challenging. Several factors contribute to this, including the shortage of mycologists to compile essential data, such as comprehensive fungal inventories, and the lack of funding (including salaries) for these experts, especially outside Europe. Yet, even in countries with the necessary resources, thorough fungal Red Lists remain absent. Take the United states for example–despite being home to one of the leading figures in fungal conservation, Gregory Mueller, the country lacked an official–or even unofficial–fungal Red List until recently. As of 2018, no such list existed, and it wasn’t until 2023 that Niskanen et al. referenced an unofficial fungal Red List for the U.S.—though the data remains difficult to access and is not publicly available.

Species of fungi included Red Lists at national and global scale: a) Species included per country by official or unofficial national Red Lists (counting as unofficial those without appropriate governmental endorsement or not using IUCN’s criteria to assess conservation status’); b) Species included per country by the IUCN’s global Red List as of December 2022.

^{Funga: A New Term for Native Fungi and the Significance of the 'FF&F' Initiative for Fungal Conservation}

Conservation of Fungi. Annual Review of Environment and Resources, 48 (2023). 149-176. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-environ-112621-090937.

For centuries, fungi were treated as “plants”, and not just scientifically but also politically. You see,  Even after Robert Whittaker formally established Fungi as a separate kingdom in 1969, scientific works kept using terms like  “Mycobiota” or “Mycoflora” instead of an equivalent to Flora or Fauna, thus leaving autochthonous fungi without a proper placement within the natural resources of a given region.

But what difference does a word make? Certainly a lot. While academia went on without an equivalent term for fungi, environmental laws were built around the “Fauna & Flora” dichotomy, leaving them without a clear place in conservation policies. As a result, governments miscategorized fungi as Flora resources, failing to recognize their unique ecological and economic importance. Nowadays, we recognize “Funga” as the proper and unambiguous term for fungal communities of a specific condition, thanks to the seminal paper published by Francisco Kuhar et al. in 2018, and the ongoing efforts of the Fungi Foundation to raise awareness of the Fauna, Flora & Funga initiative (FF&F), which reinforces that the fungal communities of the world are as important as the animal and plant ones.

And what impact has this initiative had? Let’s look at key fungal conservation efforts over the years. Way before the implementation of “Funga”, The first hyphae of fungal conservation emerged in 1982, when Dieter Benkert produced the first ever Red List of endangered macrofungi of Germany, in accordance with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) criteria. This was soon followed by the foundation of the European Council for the Conservation of Fungi (ECCF) in 1985 by a network of mycologists, in response to reports of significant declines in fruiting bodies production and species records during the 1970’s and early 80’s: The ECCF’s mission was to document Europe’s macroscopic Funga, assess species conservation status, and develop regional and continental Red Lists of threatened fungi, according to the IUCN’s guidelines.

Given these advances, many European countries had developed comprehensive Red Lists by the 1990’s. But what about countries in other continents? Take the United states for example–despite being home to one of the leading figures in fungal conservation, Gregory Mueller, the country lacked an official or even an unofficial fungal Red List until recently. As of 2018, no such list existed, and it wasn’t until 2023 that Niskanen et al. referenced an unofficial fungal Red List for the U.S.—though the data remains difficult to access and is not publicly available.

The “Fungal Conservation Pledge” and other proposals being pushed to protect wild mushrooms

Protecting Fungi: A Threat to Business or a Path to Sustainable Mycopreneurship

Part 2 Coming Soon

Thanks for reading this first installment from Ezequiel -

Shoutout to our sponsors at Minnesota Nice Ethnobotanicals

Go check their site out by clicking on the embedded link in their name above and see the broad selection of legal entheogenic fungi they’re offering as well as their own ongoing fungal conservation efforts around the planet.

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